This application generally relates to provisioning subscriptions to user devices.
As smart phones, tablet computers, and other user devices have become ubiquitous, various types of subscription services have arisen to enhance user experiences. These include content provider services, data storage services, gaming services, etc. Content provider services, for example, give users access to various types of digital content including, music, movies, books, etc. Often, a content provider service obtains license rights to a library of digital content. A user subscribes to the content provider service to receive content items, either individually or bundled together (e.g., by genre) via a stream. Users are typically able to access content provider services via user devices, and sometimes also via other types of devices such as, various computers, network-enabled stereo receivers, etc. Traditional search engines and similar tools allow users to search libraries of available content to find content items for viewing, listening and/or downloading. Users are often charged periodic subscription fees, but other payment models are known including, for example, charges by content item, charges by unit time, etc. Other example services provided to user devices include map services, various other content services, etc.
Oftentimes, mobile service providers offer their customers subscriptions to third-party subscription services, either a la carte or bundled with mobile network access. Subscription fees are typically collected from the customer by the mobile service provider and forwarded to the subscription service. Before the customer is able to access the subscription service, however, it is necessary to provision the subscription so that the service provider knows that the customer is properly subscribed. Provisioning subscriptions to mobile service provider customers, however, has created difficulties.
For example, it is known for a subscription service provider to provision a subscription based on user credentials supplied to a user by the mobile service provider. When the mobile service provider enrolls a user for a subscription to the service provider, the mobile service provider sends the subscription service provider an enrollment message indicating an identifier of the user device (e.g., a mobile phone number). The user logs-in to the mobile service provider system utilizing user credentials supplied by the mobile service provider. Once the user is logged-in to the mobile service provider system, it directs the user device to a subscription service system. The subscription service system verifies that the user device is authorized to access the subscription service by comparing the identity of the requesting user device to a list of authorized user devices. The identity of the requesting user device is indicated by a user device identifier (e.g., the mobile phone number). This arrangement encounters difficulties, however, when a user device's identifier changes. For example, if the user obtains a new user device or a new identifier (e.g., a telephone number), the service provider system must send an update to the subscription service provider before the user can once again access the subscription service. Also, if the user device connects to the subscription service via a connection not using the mobile network, then the correct user device identifier may not be provided, preventing the user from accessing the subscription service.
It is also known for a user device system to be provided with direct access via an application program interface (API) to create subscription records at a subscription service provider system. The subscription records indicate a user device identifier of the user device and are initially configured with a flag indicating that the associated user device has not yet logged-in to the subscription service provider system. When the subscription service provider system receives an access request from a user device, it identifies a corresponding subscription record based on the user device's identifier. If the subscription record is flagged, then the subscription service provider system queries the user device to provide user credentials that will be used for subsequent log-ins, then the flag may be removed from the subscription record and the device given access to the subscription service. If the subscription record is not flagged, it indicates that the user of the user device has previously provided user credentials. The user device is then prompted for the user credentials and given access to the subscription service if the correct user credentials are provided. This provisioning method, however, also suffers from complications and difficulties. For example, when a user device identifier changes, it is necessary for the mobile service provider system to indicate the change and provide the updated and prior user device identifier to the subscription provider service. Also, when the user device connects to the subscription service using a network other than the mobile network, the subscription service may not recognize the user device and, therefore, may prevent access to the subscription service.